Dry Lips Sticking to Harp
Sun, 02/01/2026 - 12:56
Dave,
I am (still) working on Level 4 and have a question that came up while practicing Ex. 2.1 and 2.2 in Solo Harmonica Study 2 Bass Lines. I find that my lips get so dry that they stick to the harp making it tricky to change positions. I think the chord pulls are causing the dryness. Any suggestions that might help me work through this?
Tue, 02/03/2026 - 07:45
#2
Thanks, Dave
I bet these ideas will help. I think I was taking my lips off the harp.
Hello Jerry S.
Here are some ideas for you...
1) Make sure your lips are staying on the face of the harmonica... lifting your lips can cause dryness.
2) If the dryness is happening on the upper holes, and you're practicing slowly, even if you moisten the harmonica before you play, the higher range may be drying out before you get there. The fix is to play a little faster so that the high end doesn't have an opportunity to dry out.
3) Normally we want to have our chin/head up to stop saliva from flowing into the harmonica. In this case, this might be helpful. Experiment to see if this helps, but doesn't clog up the harmonica.